CRUFFLER.COM
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WHAT IN BLUE BLAZES IS A CRUFFLER ANYWAY???
No no no no! A Cruffler is not a glazed pastry that one can get at the local doughnut shop, nor is a Cruffler something that an automobile exhaust system specialist can help you with. Let me back up a bit.
Since 1968, in order to legally receive a firearm shipped across state lines, the recipient must possess a valid "Federal Firearms License" issued by the United States Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (BATF). There are many types of these licenses; for dealers, for manufacturers, for importers, and for collectors. Of all of them, the collector license (known as a Type 03 license) is unique in that it does not permit the licensee to engage in a business, but rather its provisions are specifically designed to enable the collector. Furthermore, the holder of a Type 03 license is restricted to receiving firearms that have been classifed by the BATF as "Curios or Relics." That is, any firearm that was demonstrably manufactured 50 years or more prior to the current date, and/or is on a special "Curios or Relics List" published by the BATF.
As a result of these specializations, the Type 03 Federal Firearms License is known as the Curios and Relics Federal Firearms License. Abbreviated, this becomes C&R FFL, or CRFFL. Now, CRFFL, if you were to try to pronounce it, would come out something like "cruffle." Hence, the holders of these licenses have taken to referring to themselves as CRFFLers, or CRUFFLERS. So, we have a whole new lexicon:
CRUFFLER: Noun. Originally the holder of a Type 03 (C&R) FFL, but now anyone who has an interest in old, historical, or just plain weird firearms for which ammunition is usually hard to come by.
CRUFFLE: Verb. To seek out old, historical, and weird firerams to shoot, study, admire, and place in historical context. Includes engaging in ceaseless research, correspondence, and conversation about same. Also requires a refinement of fiscal priorities (Hmm. . . .I can eat this week, or I can get that all-matching Norwegian .30-06 conversion K98k. . .).
CRUFFLING:
Active Participle. For a true Cruffler, this is often equated with
breathing. . .